Inside Police Custody 2 to have a lawyer present during the ‘exploratory conversation’, and neither does it require the police to explain the content of the right nor the consequences of waiver. As a result, the Bulgarian partner in this research concluded that, in practice, there is no effective right of access to a lawyer during the initial stages of police detention. The right of access to a lawyer is limited, in some of the countries, either by regulating the time that the police or investigative body are required to wait for a lawyer to attend, or by permitting the police to continue to carry out investigative acts during the period before a lawyer attends upon the suspect. In Slovenia, for example, whilst the police cannot interrogate a suspect who has exercised their right to a lawyer, this delay in proceeding is limited to two hours. If this results in an interrogation being conducted in the absence of a lawyer, the product cannot be used as evidence, although previous research has demonstrated that a record of such an ‘informal’ interrogation is kept on file and is therefore available to the trial judge. The Directive on the right of access to a lawyer does not require the mandatory attendance of a lawyer at any stage of the criminal process. Rather, it provides for a right of access to a lawyer, which suspected and accused persons can waive (subject to national laws on mandatory defence) on condition that they have been provided with clear and sufficient information in simple and understandable language about the content of the right and the possible consequences of waiving it, that any waiver is given voluntarily and unequivocally, is revocable, and that the decision is recorded (Art. 9). It should be noted that Article 6 of the Directive on procedural safeguards for children does require member states to introduce mandatory defence for children, including at the police station stage, although this does not come into force until June 2019. Italy and Spain do have a system of mandatory defence; in Italy it cannot be waived, and in Spain it can only be waived in road safety cases. Romania also has a system of mandatory defence, although this does not apply to a person who is the subject of administrative leading to the police station. Hungary and Poland have a system of mandatory defence for certain categories of suspects or accused persons, or certain categories of cases; for example, where the suspect has certain vulnerabilities, or is a child (for certain procedural actions), or where the suspected offence carries a sentence of five years’ imprisonment or more. The other countries do not have mandatory defence at the initial investigative stage although some, such as Slovenia, require mandatory defence at certain other stages of criminal proceedings. Lithuania has legislated for mandatory defence for suspects under arrest, and this comes into force in January 2019. It would seem that in those countries that have a mandatory defence system, there is no provision for derogation from the right of access to a lawyer. Those countries that do not have mandatory defence take different approaches to the question of derogation. In Lithuania, the right of access to a lawyer is absolute (which exceeds the requirements of the Directive). In Austria, on the other hand, there is provision for derogation if access to a lawyer would jeopardise the investigation, which has been criticised on the grounds that it is too broad and vague, and is open to inappropriate use by investigative authorities. The Directive on the right of access to a lawyer does not require that legal aid be made available to suspects who want to exercise their right to a lawyer, but who do not have the means to pay for the lawyer. The Directive on the right to information requires that suspected or accused persons be informed of any entitlement to free legal advice and the conditions for obtaining such advice (Art. 3(1)(b)), but this does not amount to a substantive obligation on member states to make legal aid available. However, the Directive on the right to legal aid, when it comes into force in May 2019, will require legal aid to be available for those who have the right of access to a lawyer under the Directive on the right of access to a lawyer. 44